I've had several young Soldiers that were "gangsters" before joining the Army. They always seemed so surprised when their bravado didn't impress their fellow Soldiers. I will never forget the young man from inner city Chicago that wasn't going to follow orders from some dumb honkey. Strangely enough after slipping in the shower and then later falling down a flight of stairs he became a stellar performer. Those damn Privates are so clumsy sometimes.
Most bad government has grown out of too much government. Thomas Jefferson
Not the same mentality at all. One is selfish and disallusioned and one is based on being part of a team, sacrifice, respect and discipline. The military is not just a job but rather a lifestyle and some people have a harder time than others letting go of their civilian lifestyle and embracing the military's. Good order and discipline are the foundation of any military. A "gangster" has to learn that their street credentials mean nothing and that they willfully joined a conformist organization. You start this with setting the right example and having their peers apply some pressure then you can graduate to taking their pay and time if they aren't getting it but with some of them simply showing them that the people they now work with are tougher and meaner than any street punk is the quickest and surest method. I train young men to go into harms way and hunt armed men. I don't have time to caudle some kid that thinks b/c he grew up in the projects he doesn't have to respect the authority my rank holds. You could ask just about any of my Soldiers that decdided they could whip my ass and they will tell you that the time they slipped in the shower was intregal in changing their attitude so that they could be successful in uniform. Are you saying I'm a person of low morality?
Most bad government has grown out of too much government. Thomas Jefferson
I don't know you personally, you may well be an exception to the rule. That last sentence is an Einstein quote which holds very true in my opinion. There are numerous studies which indicate the psych profile of criminals and law enforcement or military types are virtually identical. In fact if you just swapped all the uses of gangster and military in your post, it would hold just as true. A gang is generally a conformist organization just like the military, and a lot of the same rules apply. Respect for "authority" is just a prevalent and important in a gang, and carries similar consequences. I see nothing you wrote which refutes this whatsoever. I do know that there are enough people who aren't attracted to the idea of holding rank over others or resorting to violence in the first place, although it's unlikely anyone does inherently![]()
Well according to your quote anyone who has ambition to be in a position of leadership is of low morality. I guess every world and business leader are just really bad people. Sounds pretty silly. I'm not an exception to any rule. I can't say I've ever personally had a leader in or out of uniform that I would classify as of low morality. If you don't see how different an organization a criminal gang and a military unit are then I don' think you are being objective about the issue. Clearly you don't understand the "rules" in the military or you would see that they are not the same and don't apply equally to both military and gangs. This isn't about me needing to assert my authority it is about what a breakdown in discipline does to a unit, particularly in combat.
Most bad government has grown out of too much government. Thomas Jefferson
Uh, no. A position of FORCE, means you physically intimidate somebody and are in a position to inflict bodily harm as part of the job description. Being powerful and having control over people by other means is different, for one thing it requires a brain. I do believe that many businessmen and politicians are utter sociopaths of a different type and no more admirable mind you.
For many kids growing up in a certain environment, joining a gang is no different than slightly more privileged kids joining the military. They do so for exactly the same reasons, and hope for the same things out of it more or less, that was my point. Obviously neither of us are objective about it though![]()
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